It's Not My Fault

New Blogsite....

2005-07-19T10:27:00.000-07:00

OK......You twisted my arm and now I will tell you. I have a new blog and will be discontinuing this one in the near future......just as soon as I can republish the old entries to the new one.

www.not-my-fault.blogs.com

Enjoy

To Do List for Summer '05

2005-05-10T13:03:00.000-07:00

1. Clean out my room at my parent's house.....because they put the house for sale and my junk has to go somewhere, hopefully not my apartment.

2. Sell first year law books on ebay.com or amazon.com

3. Finish at least one scrapbook

4. Read at least 10 books I already own before buying any new ones

5. Seriously work on gaining employment in the legal field for next summer

6. Try to rehabilitate both hips (cartalidge is frayed)

7. Buy a new electric guitar

8. Face-lift the blog.....or add some things to it

9. Update the "to do list"

I'd Give Anything For That Feeling.....

2005-05-10T12:19:00.000-07:00

No, I am not talkin about that feeling. Just once during this hellish exam season I would like to walk out of the exam with a few minutes to spare and a nice smug smirk on my face. The kind of look that says, "I know I got an A."

I blew that on the last three. I've got Contracts on Thursday. One more chance.

My brother came over yesterday to proclaim that he knew he got an A on his history exam. I miss those days. Well little brother, enjoy it while you can. While I'm on the subject of siblings..... It's rather odd to have a 19 year old brother, I still think of him as a little kid. He's doing great at TCU and doesn't hesitate to come over and eat my food or bring his girlfriend over when my apartment is a wreck. His Cadet of the Month certificate is on my fridge, as well as the bluebook from his last exam. No, I don't put them there, he comes over and puts them on the fridge. It's what I get for giving him a key.

And if you thought Dallas had it all......you haven't tried Naked Yoga

2005-05-08T20:09:00.000-07:00

Naked Yoga.

The location of the interesting exercise is unknown, and appears to be revealed to members only upon joining. It's somewhere near downtown Dallas. No females allowed. Passive voyeurs need not apply. Mostly gay, but welcomes bi-sexual and straight males as well. Says they are a great way to meet other healthy guys and there is no hanky panky in class. Yoga after all is sensual, not sexual.

Favorite quote from the website:

"What if I get an erection during class? This rarely happens, and if it does, it's nothing to be embarrassed about and will pass quickly. You will have so much to concentrate on in order to achieve and maintain your postures and your breathing that this probably won't be a issue. If it does happen, it's ok--don't worry about it. "

So if you are ever in Dallas, why not try something new........

Music of the moment: All The Things She Said (extension 119 club edit) by Tatu

I found the cure......

2005-05-08T00:01:00.000-07:00

Yes, its astonishing news. The secret to clear skin is not the Judith Light and Jessica Simpson endorsed ProActiv. Rather, the answer is a stress free life with no hormones.

Stress I can live without, but I need the hormones. Or at least I am assuming that humans need hormones for many reasons, including the obvious ones.

Stress isn't always bad. I usually work better under a certain amount of stress, but lately I think the chest pains I have been having are probably not the good kind of stress. Yes, chest pains, and no it's not indigestion, acid reflux, etc. I am hoping they will go away after exams.

Is Oprah the Anti-Christ?

2005-05-03T14:38:00.000-07:00

I'll admit, I do listen to the local top 40 station on my quick 2 mile commute to the law school. Usually the morning show is silly and a bunch of fluff, but this morning one of the DJ's made a good point.

No I don't think that Oprah is the Anti-Christ. BUT, the guys on the show made some pretty good points. She has a huge audience, millions of people admire her, she's "spiritual." Who better to slowly steal into our lives than Oprah Winfrey. It would be very unassuming.

I don't really have time right now to read through Revelation and put some actual thought into the above hearsay and speculation. But it was an amusing diversion from studying for property and some food for thought to get your minds churning.

2 things to remember:

1. If you google the word "antichrist" and press I'm Feeling Lucky, you get a site about how GW Bush is the antichrist........mildly amusing

2. Even Satan believes in God.

Hall of Shame.

2005-04-30T10:34:00.000-07:00

Don't we all love weddings. First of all, 14 bridesmaids and 14 groomsmen is ridiculous. Running away and claiming you were kidnapped wasn't too bright either. Even though calling off the wedding or post poning it would have been hard, it would have been a hell of alot easier than what she's going to deal with now.

Ms. Wilbanks, I think you just gave your fiance THE red flag he needs to forget you. Have you considered a nice island somewhere with the guy that messed up the Chicago Cubs game?

Hot Coffee Revisited

2005-04-29T23:31:00.000-07:00

In a previous blog I made a reference to McDonald’s. Admittedly, I was making a snide jeer at the coffee spill incident in the ‘90s. The first day of law school, the dean explained the case.

Liebeck v. McDonald’s – a case that went unpublished (probably at McDonald’s request).

A 79 year old woman spilled the coffee on herself as she sat in the passenger seat of a car. She received third degree burns and a bill for $20,000. McDonald’s refused to settle, as they had dealt with over 700 burn claims. Taking their chances with the court (which in my opinion was just dumb) McDonald’s lost.

All the lady wanted was to recover her lost medical expenses, it was the jury that awarded her the large sum. What people don’t understand is that it’s up to juries to decide compensatory and punitive damages. Yeah, they get guidelines, but there isn’t a way to predict how they will come about their settlement amount. Often times when a big corporate entity is on trial, the juries dig into the deep pockets. (I’m not shedding tears for corporate America, just merely pointing out what they teach us in law school – go after the person with the deepest pockets.)

In the end the jury awarded Liebeck $200,000 in compensatory damages. This amount was reduced to $160,000 because the jury found Liebeck 20 percent at fault in the spill. The jury also awarded Liebeck $2.7 million in punitive damages. The trial court subsequently reduced the punitive award to $480,000. Interestingly we still don’t know what Liebeck received in the end because McDonald’s entered into a secret settlement with her.

Why was McDonald’s just dumb? McDonald’s produced over 700 documented burn claims during discovery. Some of the claims were similar to Liebeck’s. I think their corporate counsel was asleep on this one because, if they had been paying attention they would have figured out that 700+ documented claims = knowledge that the coffee is too hot. McDonald’s own witness testified that they kept their coffee hotter than the industry standard and that they knew it was hot enough to burn the mouth and throat. The list goes on…………….

Something to add to your summer reading list Fast Food Nation by Eric Schlosser.

Music of the moment - Lujon by Henry Mancini

And you thought you had it bad......

2005-04-25T00:21:00.000-07:00

Apparently, a Canadian singer was asked to sing the US national anthem for a sporting event. She forgot the words, not once, but twice. She also left to get the words and fell when she came back.

All I can say is Prior Proper Planning Prevents Piss Poor Performance! You would think you would learn the words of a song before you sing it in front of thousands of people.

On a side rant, I think it's sad that people don't hold their hands over their hearts when they sing the national anthem.

Fresh cat, anyone?

2005-04-23T00:34:00.000-07:00

The Wisconsin Legislature proposed a plan to all people to hunt wild cats. That would also include domesticated cats that are no longer in the direct control of their owners. I may not like cats, but this is slightly strange.

So are people going to eat the cats they hunt down? Will the game wardens have to issue hunting permits? Will there be a limit as to the number a person can kill? Will they be adding cat season or will they always be in season?

Musical selection of the moment: Pearly Shells by Don Ho

Mahalo.

A Win for Those Corporate Guys in the Glass Box

2005-04-22T23:53:00.000-07:00

McDonald's may make you fat and burn your skin, but Wendy's did not put a finger in your chili. For once a frivolous lawsuit didn't work out. As it happens, a woman alleged she found a finger in her chili. Turns out it was a hoax. But at least my Torts class gained the benefit of twisting the facts into nice confusing, and may I point out, POINTLESS hypos.

Musical selection of the moment: All Over You by Live

Today in history!

2005-04-21T13:28:00.000-07:00

1946: John Maynard Keynes, whose economic theories gave a tremendous boost to growing government expenditures in the 1930s and 1940s, dies at Firle, Sussex.

(Ah yes, the Keynesian theories.....the word Keynesian has been subject to quite a bit of mispronunciation. To avoid that little faux pas my undergrad economics professor had us say the name in unison several times. I got a D+ in that class. Thanks Professor Vrooman for teaching Vroomanomics instead of economics.)

In no way is the above statement meant to defame Vrooman in anyway. He's a great prof., but his teaching style didn't match my learning style. Ok now that I have disclaimed my liability.......

For all you Texas fans:

1836: Rebel Texas forces under Tennessee lawyer Samuel Houston surprise and rout the government army under General Antonio López de Santa Anna at the Battle of San Jacinto.

Consumer advice requested.

2005-04-20T16:57:00.000-07:00

I am in the market for a USB Flash Drive.....i.e. one of those little USB key chain things. Are there any brands that are better than others or is everything pretty much the same? Any comments as to whether I should go with a 256mb, 512mb, or a whole GB?

Your posts will be most appreciated.

Pick your poison.

2005-04-18T12:30:00.000-07:00

To the "anonymous" med student: You are correct. I did choose to go to law school. Most days the good outweighs the bad, but every now and then things get a little crazy. I wasn't exactly in the best frame of mind at the time of publishing.

My rant was really addressed to people that are not in a grad school program. I am almost positive that if my fellow law students and I underestimated law school, that all the little pre-meds have done the same thing. I just get tired of hearing my friends tell me it can't be that hard and why can't I spend more time with them.

Anyway, I hope that med school is treating you well. I know it is stressful, challenging and difficult. But you'll make it through and will be able to prescribe me with some strong anti-stress medication. Enjoy the scenery of Lubbock.

Not a clue.

2005-04-14T23:36:00.000-07:00

All you little pre-law people are in for a real treat. Law school is academic hazing at it's finest. You won't believe me now, but come April of your first year you will understand.

You keep telling yourself there is no way that you can study all the time. You ask yourself how can it be that hard when the undergraduate distractions are gone and it's you, the library, your apartment, and a few law folks. Then you realize every rumor, horror story, and lie is really true.

Only my fellow law students will understand. It's like a fraternity of the academically and mentally abused. I am tired, stressed, and could use a good laugh.

I Want A Brown Nose

2005-04-12T13:45:00.000-07:00

It is nearing the end of the semester and our appellate briefs are due in about 72 hours. Reading for class is not exactly a high priority. To avoid calling upon unprepared students my torts professor asked for volunteers. I volunteered to explain the case and surcomb to the usual third degree cross examination.

Before I could utter the names of the parties involved the professor cut me off to say that she had already called on me twice this semester. She asked for another volunteer. Who should raise their hand, but the guy with the highest GPA.

Imagine the irony. He speaks up at least once in every class. That's 8 times a week, minimum. I never speak up in class and the one time I volunteer for the slaughter, someone swoops in to steal my thunder.

Anyone for an extra spray of hairspray on the buttocks?

2005-04-12T09:59:00.000-07:00

Ah yes, pageant season. I caught the last half hour of the Miss USA pageant last night. I am glad I didn't watch from the beginning. The hosts obvious efforts to be humorous were thwarted by their awkwardness and idiocy.

The fact that The Donald runs/owns the pageant had nothing to do with a contestant from The Apprentice being a judge. I will admit I was amused that Raj from season 2 of the show was a judge. It was probably his ultimate dream....if only he could get a few numbers. (Raj's website is definitely good for a few laughs)

Though I only caught the last part when the 5 finalists were selected, I was rooting for North Carolina and Florida. Somehow Florida came in last, behind Illinois. I honestly don't know how Illinois was selected to be in the top 5.......her answers were more than terrible. But at least North Carolina won.

Not that any of that really matters. People say pageants are a way to pay for college.....oops most of those girls have finished college and shell out the big bucks to make it into the big pageants.

I guess I should end with something like, "beauty is on the inside," but let's be honest. If you've got it, flaunt it.

Beating the dead diversity horse, yet again.

2005-04-08T10:30:00.000-07:00

Yet again, Vanderbilt's student newspaper broached the subject of diversity. There really aren't too many ways you can spin that subject before it all sounds the same. I honestly hate the word diversity. It's an ambiguous, overused, politically correct term creeping into our popular lexicon.

For background purposes, I am an alumna of Vanderbilt and saw four years of diversity programming shoved down my throat. I also helped to promote diversity through a diversity documentary I produced and through campus organizations I was involved with.

That aside, I would like to make a few points about a quote from this article by a Vanderbilt student: "To change their outlook we need to change the educational system from the bottom up to encourage more racial interaction so that black and white students can find out for themselves that they actually are not as different as their parents would have them think."

First, the definition of diversity is not clear. College administrations change the meaning to fit their needs. If the need changes the definition changes. Does diversity include racial, religious, sexual orientation, cultural, etc. qualifications? That would depend on any given moment. More often than not it would seem to focus on race. Schools want to attract different races with the pretext of creating a diverse environment. I would assert that some schools actually want to improve rankings, etc.

Second, the school's administrations create if not exacerbate racial segregation. Let's renovate the Black Cultural Center. That's fine, I am all for it, but who will the primary users be? Vanderbilt would have us believe that it is for the benefit of everyone on campus, but the facts conclusively show that the African-American students are the primary users. That's fine too, but when you think about it, providing a space that will primarily be used by only one race gives that race another opportunity to segregate themselves. Why don't we have an Asian student building, or a Muslim student building, heck why not a cultural center for Whites? One of the only reasons I needed to use the BCC was because there was no where else on campus to hold a meeting. If I walked into the BCC, sat down, and studied I would be met with looks of discontent. I would not be welcome. I would like to commend the Jewish Life center because there have been great efforts to make the building available and welcome to non-Jewish related events. I would feel welcome studying there.

Third, the students choose to segregate themselves. Go to Rand during lunch and you will find the African-American students sitting in one section. Few intermingle with other races. If you try to sit in their area during lunch you will be made to feel uncomfortable. Freshman year, in the move-in parking lot I met a nice African-American girl living in my hall. We chatted, exchanged the usual pleasantries, and moved in. A day later, I saw her in the hallway and tried to talk to her and see how life was treating her so far. I was met with no response. She completely ignored me as she walked past with a group of African-American girls. For four years she ignored my existence. There was an African-American track team member on my hall and because she hung out with the white girls, her own race shunned her.

I am not trying to single out the African-Americans with my examples. There are instances of these issues existing for each race.

In sum, diversity is not something Vanderbilt will achieve until they clearly define it's meaning. Race relations will not improve because of some educational programs designed to break down barriers. What do you think the school has tried in the last few years? It doesn't work. Students or society as a whole are going to have to step outside of their comfort zones. Maybe we are all lazy and just don't want to. Either way, don't blame the other race, the administration, or lack of programming. It's each person's own damn fault.

Enough Complaining.

2005-04-08T01:34:00.000-07:00

Here is an interesting tidbit about the ever complaining American. CLICK HERE. I may not be Catholic, but I don't mind the flags being lowered to half staff. It's a sign of respect. So let's all criticize Bush for asking for flags to be lowered in honor of Pope John Paul II.

Some call it a mixing of church and state. Sorry but we aren't lowering it for Jesse Jackson, Billy Graham, or Jerry Falwell. No one's constitutional right has been violated by lowering the flag in honor of the Pope. No one is asking you to agree with Judeo-Christianity in anyway. You can't deny the political significance of this particular pope. Get over it. The Constitution doesn't lay out a provision protecting you from being offended.

If Bush didn't ask for the flags to be lowered people would have complained about that too. I can guarantee that even Bill Clinton or Al Gore would have had the flags lowered. Props to the ACLU for not touching this argument. (I do not say this lightly for I DO NOT like the ACLU).

If Texas football wasn't weird enough already.

2005-04-08T01:33:00.000-07:00

If you haven't seen Friday Night Lights, you should go rent it. It's much better than Varsity Blues. In fact there's no comparison. The cinematography is artful and the soundtrack, mostly by Explosions in the Sky, is eerily haunting and beautiful.

In the real world, tensions got a bit out of hand as the father of a high school football player shot the coach for benching his son.

I don't like Aggies but......

2005-04-05T20:04:00.000-07:00

I pride myself in not owning any paraphernalia from a Texas state school, especially A&M. I'm a die hard Texan, but there are some things I cannot understand. The rivalry between A&M and UT is one of them. When people say UT I still think University of Tennessee and I was ecstatic when Tennessee beat A&M at the Cottonbowl. I still don't know how A&M made it to a bowl game in the first place. Maybe it was a consolation prize for losing to Baylor.

I may not like the Aggies but they do know how to fill the stands at a football game, unlike my alma mater, Vanderbilt. Another thing that is different at A&M is their lack of diversity. I am not going to comment on where I stand on the diversity issue in higher education, because I think that diversity has become a synonym for "let's be politically correct and have lots of races admitted to our school so we look good." Before you get upset and write a post, let me say that I spent several years being involved with various diversification efforts at Vanderbilt and produced a documentary on diverse student admissions and recruitment.

But I was amused when I read this:

"Attending A&M with the purpose in mind of changing things for the sake of diversity is not what our University is about. 'We' don't want to be like everyone else. Some call us a cult, maybe we are."

Why I wasn't a cheerleader!

2005-04-05T19:33:00.000-07:00

I have the blonde hair, but I'm too tall. Maybe, I'm just not flexible enough. Truth be told, I never had the desire to parade around in front of people creating "spirit" for the team. Ah yes, spirit. If you go to a high school in Texas you may actually watch the game instead of the cheerleaders. If you go to Vanderbilt you will probably watch the cheerleaders, that is if you can see them from the poorly designed stadium.

Why this sudden interest in cheerleaders? An interesting byline. Oddly, I never liked or disliked the cheerleaders in high school. They were part of the scenery and ambient noise.

Here is an excerpt from the article, if you have the time, read the whole thing.

In his remarks to reporters, Al Edwards, the representative from Texas, points out the futility of promoting abstinence curricula when cheerleaders offer a spirited rebuttal to it on Friday nights. He's right that music videos and hip-hop have further sexualized high-school cheerleading routines. But those same music videos have made the cheerleader seem relatively harmless by comparison. And even as cheerleading routines have become more lascivious, if only to vie for the attention of the crowd, they have also become far more dangerous: From 1982 to 2000, more than half of "direct catastrophic" injuries suffered by collegiate and high-school female athletes came from cheerleading.

Sure the cheerleaders may be "cool" in high school, but when they are in college no one knows who they are. Unless you are a male cheerleader a.k.a. yell leader at Texas A & M. There, yell leaders are voted on by the student body. The students were upset when the University allowed a female cheerleading squad in 2001.

It's a scourge of such magnificent proportions that students say it threatens to shake the very foundations of the school.

For the first time in the university's 125-year history, cheerleaders are building pyramids and doing backflips - with the administration's consent.

A White Man Named Mo

2005-04-03T15:23:00.000-07:00

It is rare that guest speakers in my Sunday school class make me actually sit and think for a moment. Mo Leverett is one of those people. If you haven't heard of him you should get to know about him. He chose to move to one of the worst neighborhoods in the United States in order to mentor the young boys and prevent them from letting the "system" take them in.

He started out by coaching football and now 15 years later has an incredible ministry, Desire Street Ministry. I won't go into great depth, you can do that on your own. He interspersed songs with his talk. It's not often you get to hear a middle aged white man sing the blues like the African American legends.

If you have time check out the website. If you have even more time, go volunteer as a mentor in a school, after school program, or rec program. These kids need good influences and we are kidding ourselves if we think that throwing some money at the problem will solve it. No matter your religion, put something back into your community by seeking out those in need on a regular basis.

I am now off of my soap box.

Current music selection: Someone Saved My Life Tonight by Elton John

Schiavo

2005-03-31T21:40:00.000-08:00

I have tried so hard not to follow the constant coverage of Ms. Schiavo's plight. If anything it's a reminder that we should all make wills and advance directives no matter our age.

I wonder what Schiavo really wanted. Did her husband stand as an obstacle to her possible recovery in the early days of her vegetative state because he was hiding something.? Is it possible he didn't want her to come back because she would accuse him of trying to kill her? If you didn't already know, there is some interesting speculation that it was Mr. Schiavo that may have caused her to be in this coma in the first place. He didn't quite finish the job and the possibility that she could recover and accuse him hung over his head. Just something else to think about.

Current music: Everybody hurts by REM

Oh the joys of spring.

2005-03-31T21:28:00.000-08:00

I like spring minus the allergies. I have added a new symptom to my allergy bank this year. Sore throats. I finally realized after a week that I wasn't sick, it was the allergies giving me the sore throat. Go figure. I should have started Zyrtec weeks ago. I have been rationing it out because when I run out I have to find a new doctor to prescribe it to me since that doctor is in Tennessee and I don't live there anymore. At least I have enough to get me through this spring.

I went for a bicycle workout in the park today. Less the homeless people and the kids that run in front of me (so I have to swerve) the Trinity River has some great bike paths. The ducks were out in full force and since it is spring they were all paired up. It may be a little corny but seeing the male and female ducks pair up and swim around together puts a smile on my face.

Current music: Adam's Song by Blink 182

New Emerging Trend???

2005-03-26T13:38:00.000-08:00

Last night, I went to use the ladies room at a restaurant. No surprise there was a wait but, this was an unusual wait. There were 2 women ahead of me in line. There was a conversation occurring in one of the stalls. Finally the door opened and 2 women emerged from the bathroom stall. I thought that was a little strange, but then the 2 women in front of me in line proceeded to enter the stall together.

Is this some new trend for women to share a stall? I find it somewhat odd. Personally I would rather not watch someone use the toilet. Besides, public restroom stalls are small enough as it is. Do you really need someone towering over you as you try to relieve yourself? I think not.

This brought a whole new side to women using the restroom together in groups.

Please don't honk!!!

2005-03-24T15:44:00.000-08:00

Ok, just in case you didn't already know: the short form of Vanderbilt is VANDY. I wore a shirt to class today with VANDY across the chest of the shirt. Someone asked me if Vanderbilt was too long so they had to cut it off. Ummm NO.

Also in case you didn't know, when going to college fairs don't talk about a school in front of it's table. Pre-professional majors are not at Vanderbilt.....besides you really don't need them. Who wants to do pre-law when law school is hard enough as it is.......pre-law ain't gonna give you a leg up. And by the way, for the last time Vanderbilt is in Nashville, Tennessee. Somehow that comes as a shock!

To the point of this little blog. Don't honk at me, whistle at me, yell at me, or look at me when I am exercising. For some reason, people take it upon themselves to make sure that I am aware of my presence out in the park by whistling, honking, etc. It's not like I am immodestly dressed. A t-shirt and regular shorts for exercising......you would think that wouldn't be provocative. Apparently it is. Next time you get the urge to honk at someone walking along the street.....don't.

Nothing

2005-03-08T21:36:00.000-08:00

Well, I just don't have much to say that's worth typing. Last week took it out of me, so I am recuperating this week.

I will say that, I am having guests over to my apartment on Thursday and Friday. And, since neither guest has been to my place before, I will be spending the better part of tomorrow cleaning and making the place spotless. Not that it's not clean now, but it's not SUPER clean and of course.......I want to impress.

current music: White Flag by

Read the FINE PRINT

2005-03-02T15:20:00.000-08:00

Yesterday evening I found myself still in the library at around 8:30 pm. Not in the mood to cook or eat anything in my fridge or pantry I decided to grab a treat or two from $2.oo fee from the other bank. And, if you read even closer you will realize there is probably an additional fee on your bank statement that your own bank charges you for using someone else's machine.

Keeping the fine print in mind and not wanting to pay $6.79 for a $2.79 sandwich, I decided to hit a Wells Fargo ATM on the way. Now of course the nearest ATM would be the downtown Fort Worth branch. Downtown means, no place to park or really really small parallel parking spaces. After making a few passes at the bank, I found a spot and got my cash.

At this point you are thinking, was it really worth it? No but it's the principle of the matter. I hate paying a double fee just for the convenience of using some other crappy institution's machine. But I digress.

With cash in hand at Sonic, I knew exactly what I wanted to eat. The grilled chicken sandwich and mozzarella sticks were calling my name. But wait.....I found more fine print. "Marinara sauce upon request." WHAT! WHAT! Mozzarella sticks aren't mozzarella sticks without the sauce. Never fear, I asked for my marinara sauce, but how many people have come to Sonic, ordered mozzarella sticks, and left not realizing there was no sauce in the bag.

How can Sonic sleep at night, deceiving their customers like that. Oh, I know.....let me guess....it's a cost saving method. Advertise the mozzarella sticks with the sauce and then make it available upon request.......nevermind that the poor customer assumes the marinara sauce comes with it. (I wonder if that violates some sort of contract rule?)

So as the story goes, I may not know how to write a trial brief, but I know how to save $4.oo in ATM fees and get my marinara sauce..................just don't forget to read the FINE PRINT.

current music: A Cool Shade of Blue by Henry Mancini

Dead Weight and Omarosa

2005-02-28T19:26:00.000-08:00

Ok, so instead of working on the trial brief which is due in about 48 hours and will take 49 hours to complete I was lured into watching "Fear Factor." The show is so bad that it doesn't even deserve a hyperlink. I'm sorry, but somehow watching someone get bitten by a snake just doesn't entertain me.

Omarosa's appearance on the show further proved to me that she is certifiably nuts and incredibly narcissistic. If she thinks she can run for president and actually get enough signatures to get on the ballot for the primaries she is really good at deluding herself. I really don't know how she sleeps at night. Anyone that saw "The Apprentice" knows what I am talking about. Trump was smart for cutting that dead weight, although he should have done it quite a bit sooner so that Omarosa's ego wouldn't have grown quite so large. I may be sick....I just found that she has a website dedicated to herself. I must point out that there is an obvious typo on the news section of the website and that she says she will tackle her fear of swimming on the show. Oops, I must have missed that because she chickened out of the swimming part of the competition.

Speaking of dead weight. The person that lives in the apartment above me is currently doing something to make loud thud sounds that vibrate the walls. I live in a nice apartment with pretty solid walls, but whatever this guy is doing sounds like he's dragging around a dead body or something. I can also hear when the person slams the doors. Almost every night it gets a little rowdy up there and I seriously wonder what's going on. Maybe I should rent the apartment across from it and do some investigation "Rear Window" style.

By the way, thought you guys could use an update on the knee....after almost a week the wound decided to close up. Now I have a sore knee which means no exercise for a week or so.....oh well it didn't look like that was going to happen anyway thanks to the lovely load of law school work.

current music: Easy Tonight by Five for Fighting

Tassels and Telemarketers

2005-02-28T08:22:00.000-08:00

I have a dressy blouse with pieces of fabric that hang down from the neck line that one is supposed to tie in a knot. A few Sundays ago I wore this blouse to church and ended up playing with the ties all through Sunday School class. The guy sitting next to me commented on my behavior after class. Apparently I am good at this whole first impression thing because every time I see him, he has to make a comment about that. Only, he calls the ties on my shirt, tassels. As promised I am mentioning this tassel thing in the blog, because it actually annoys me that 1) he thinks they are tassels and 2) he keeps bugging me about that......but oh well at least it provided for a boring blog entry.

On to the second part of this mornings rant. Telemarketers. The only phone calls that I receive on the phone in my apartment are from solicitors. Hence, I never answer the phone. If someone really needs to talk to me they can leave a message or they are important enough to have my cell phone number.

This morning, I received a telemarketing call not on my home phone but my CELL phone!!!!! The SH** is about to hit the fan. All it takes is one phone call to open the floodgates. Now that my information is on a list it will be sold over and over and over and over again.

Today's culprit was none other than the Republican National Committee. It's ok, I'm a Republican, but it burns me that:

1) the guy on the phone kept calling me Mrs. even after I told him three times I was a Miss

2) the guy had a strange accent leading me to believe he probably isn't Republican.....not because of the accent but because when I asked him if he was a righty he ignored me

3) they used my cell phone #.....how they got it, I don't know....maybe I gave it to them, but I seriously doubt it

Telemarketing is a dirty job and I guess someone has to do it. Glad it's not me.

current music: Babylon by David Gray

Maple Point

2005-02-26T01:57:00.000-08:00

The verdict is in: I didn't spend my entire evening in the library. Seeing an old friend from Ole Miss and dinner with friends lured me from the windowless library.

60 miles later on the old odometer and I now find myself back at my computer. This darn blog is addicting. I feel like I have to update all three of my regular readers about the goings on in my life.

So, after dinner at Ojeda's (Mexican food), Maple Point beckoned us to it's door. For those not familiar with the bad parts of town in Dallas, Maple Point is a great whole in the wall on Maple Avenue in a shady part of town. Why do my friends like it? Cheap beer, friendly bartenders that put up with us, bad karaoke, and no one we know goes there. The usual Friday/Saturday night crowd consists of people over 40 that have nothing better to do and a bunch of introverted and weird medical school students. Let's just say this place makes my group look cool.....heck, even Napoleon Dynamite would be considered cool at Maple Point.

Some of the Maple Point Crew.....I'm not pictured.

Amongst other amusing events this evening one can't go to a karaoke bar without hearing the obligatory "If I Could Turn Back Time" by Cher. By the way, rap songs should not be allowed in karaoke bars unless you can actually rap......2 white guys attempting a Nelly song isn't easy on the ears. My favorite was the med student with a t-shirt that read "trust me I’m a doctor." Wow he was cool..........not so much. But one of my "acquaintances" thought he was the "shizzle" and got some beer from him....only after she told him that he was so good looking that he could be in a boy-band. Oh the horror.....if I was a guy I would be insulted by that comment.

Splitting hairs or splitting ends......

2005-02-25T14:14:00.000-08:00

Wow, I am exhausted. I came back to the library this afternoon after class, lunch, and a haircut and I don't think I will be staying here for long. My pillow is calling my name. Should I take a nap and then go to dinner with friends....or take a nap and do what I should and write the trial brief?

My regular hair stylist is on maternity leave, so I had to brave the unknown world of an unfamiliar hair chopper......It didn't turn out too, bad. Nothing that a little of my own styling techniques couldn't fix. At least I got rid of my split ends. Ever since 7th grade Latin I take the time to make sure that I keep the split ends to a minimum. The kid that sat behind me, Lawrence Lau, would complain that I had too many split ends. Obviously this child had too much time on his hands and was pretty bored with conjugating Latin verbs if he took the time to notice my split ends.

Speaking of hair, I would like to remind some of my fellow law school classmates that there is no reason to split hairs and get all upset about dumb stuff. Choose your battles people. I'm not on the defensive, but it seems that as the semester drags on people are getting, shall we say....feisty. We've been spending too much time together studying and complaining about our classes. I call it library fever a.k.a cabin fever..........It's time for spring break.

Bear with me.

2005-02-24T21:18:00.000-08:00

Ok folks, bear with me as this blog is under construction....due to a nice size work load at school it might take a while but at least you can still read it....

I would like to mention that I miss my undergraduate university. I used hate the student health services because I thought they were inept, but now that I don't have them around anymore......well, I need them. At the ripe age of 23 I fell off my bike a few days ago and skinned my knee pretty bad. Needless to say, despite my OCD tendencies of keeping the wound clean, it's now infected. Sorry, if this isn't something you wanted to know, but you don't have to read this.

Anyway, the law school I am at is worthless when it comes to student services, because of the lack of support from the main campus. They have a part-time nurse! How can a university have a part-time nurse! My knee needs attention NOW! I am too old to go to my pediatrician, the ER isn't a place I want to re-visit (I will have to tell that story later), nor is it a place for an infected skinned knee. Do I really want to succumb to the medical clinics? And what doctor's office will take me at a moment's notice.

My only hope is that when I wake up in the morning, the infection will have subsided and I can go on my merry way to Criminal Law without worrying if my knee will fall off.

current music playing: The River of Dreams by Billy Joel

No I am not a Billy Joel fan, it just happens to be playing.

Get to the point!

2005-02-24T11:09:00.000-08:00

Ok, so staying up until 3:00am last night just to set up a blog....not the greatest of ideas. I feel great this morning.....However, now I have a place to rant about my procrastinations.

Anyway, today I went to another non-helpful Career Seminar. Career Services claims to know what they are doing, but it seems that we do the same thing in all the seminars: learn nothing new. I already know that stuff. If you can get me job then I will listen. Please just don't tell me what I have already heard or already know. I suppose I could quit going to these things, but the hope of learning something new springs eternal......

So maybe, someday I will learn something new, but in the mean time the Career Services speaker should get to the point and not ramble for 30 minutes.

2005-02-23T23:09:00.000-08:00

I may have no readers, but we all have to start somewhere.

I used to have a diary that I would update periodically. More often than not, I would run to my diary as soon I met a new boy. From 6th grade until my junior year in college I kept a running commentary on who I had a crush on at the moment.

I started dating a person that I "thought" was the most amazing person and decided I didn't need my diary anymore. I spent an hour ripping each page to shreds to ensure my secrets stayed secrets. Looking back a paper shredder may have been more efficient, but who thinks of efficiency at a time like that.

So why am I mentioning this in the first post of my blog? Well, you guessed it......I met another great guy who asked if I kept a journal (the grown-up word for diary). I mentioned that I threw it away when I realized it was a little ridiculous that I didn't remember anyone in the darn thing and if I did remember I wanted to forget about it!

Needless to say......the great guy is........not so great........and while I don't miss the diary/journal, I have been wanting to start a blog for a while and somehow I thought this would be a good opener........not so much now that I think of it, but what else am I going to write.

Maybe I should mention it's after midnight, I don't feel good, I have class in the morning, and a HUGE trial brief due next week......which makes this the perfect opportunity to stay up late and create a blog.

current music playing as I finish posting: Sugar by Imperial Teen